Modeling hepatitis C virus infection using human induced pluripotent stem cells

Proc Natl Acad Sci U S A. 2012 Feb 14;109(7):2544-8. doi: 10.1073/pnas.1121400109. Epub 2012 Jan 30.

Abstract

Human pathogens impact patient health through a complex interplay with the host, but models to study the role of host genetics in this process are limited. Human induced pluripotent stem cells (iPSCs) offer the ability to produce host-specific differentiated cells and thus have the potential to transform the study of infectious disease; however, no iPSC models of infectious disease have been described. Here we report that hepatocyte-like cells derived from iPSCs support the entire life cycle of hepatitis C virus, including inflammatory responses to infection, enabling studies of how host genetics impact viral pathogenesis.

Publication types

  • Research Support, N.I.H., Extramural
  • Research Support, Non-U.S. Gov't

MeSH terms

  • Blotting, Western
  • Cells, Cultured
  • Fluorescent Antibody Technique
  • Hepatitis C / pathology*
  • Humans
  • Models, Theoretical*
  • Pluripotent Stem Cells / pathology*
  • Reverse Transcriptase Polymerase Chain Reaction